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Navigati Self-balancing skateboard / scooter projects: One and two wheeled. on

1 ) C a r b o n p a n e ll e d s John Dingley email: selfe balancing-skateboard@sky.com lf b Recent updates: a October 2010: Link (15) shows my l attempt to give twin wheeler more "feel" a by making it steer using pressure n sensors under the griptape c March 2011 New version of economy i build arduino twin wheel board n Took to Maker Faire UK 2011. So much g RF noise my wireless control did not s work so had to revert to cable hand k controller. a March 19th 2011: Have just appeared t on the New Scientist TV channel! e http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/nstv/ b 2011/03/make-your-own-self-balancingo skateboard.html a Next project May 2011: Building a r Unicycle....see link 17 on left menu d May 24th 2011: Some video of (Brown County Democrat, December 28, 1900.) v me talking to Jon Bentley with the The "Footomobile" of the future! e skateboard at the 2011 UK Makerfaire r has just appeared on the "Gadget s Show" Click here i June 24th 2011: Building new twin o wheeled compact board with proper n pneumatic tyres. Uses lessons learned M from all previous machines. a y

2 0 YouTube Video 1 0 MakerFaire March 2011 video above 2 showing twin wheeler in action. This ) machine has solid polypropylene wheels T and batteries in the deck. Works well, not w so good on rough surfaces though. i n WYouTube Video h e This one has pneumatic tyres, axle line runs e through centre of the deck, steered using l pressure sensors under right foot and can be s run without any form of hand controller (at e last). Will update this video with a better lf one soon. b a l a LATEST PROJECT n TWIN WHEELED c BOARD WITH PNEUMATIC i n TYRES. g s TAKING THIS TO MINIk MAKERFAIRE BRIGHTON UK 3rd a September 2011 t e b o a r d With thanks to the inspirational webpages of Ben li Smithers, Trevor Blackwell and many others (see links g Click HERE for more information page on left hand sidebar). h See new video above taken at the miniWhy do this? t makerfaire - Initially to teach myself microcontroller w e Previous twin wheeler has e-bike battery in programming and for the sheer technical challenge of i deck. Could ride this all day and it would it. - Most things have been invented. Although the selfg still show 3/4 battery charge, therefore balancing skateboard concept has also already been h had excessive battery capacity. t Objectives / improvements for this machine invented, developing an intuitive, easy to ride, compact, practical machine is a really tough challenge v are to make it more like the "i-slide" e concept but better. Uses all lessons learned requiring good old fashioned building and practical experimentation. Cannot just do all this on a computer r from previous machines: s - Smaller NiMH batteries from RC cars. If design package. - If you look at the truth of "innovation" there are i need more range - exchange batteries. o - Batteries easy to remove and swap over. rarely Eureka moments. Usually they involve reading n - Must have pneumatic tyres for better ride all around a subject, long periods of experimentation and slow incremental development into a workable 3 on non-smooth surfaces.

) - Extremely compact design for all the E mechanicals a - Symmetrical profile, could ride it either s way up. This makes frame much harder to y design. b - Integrated carry handle u - Reliable hard wired Nunchuck steering / il trim control. d l No way I could do this bolting metal o sections together. This one is going to need w a LOT of cutting and welding.

device. This is what I am doing here. For example mp3 players existed long before the iPod came out. Edison made the first practical light bulb, but not the first ever light bulb. - My first effort in 2008 was big and clumsy but it worked. Have been improving the designs ever since!

c o s t A r d u 24/6/2011 i n The i-slide. This was a computer design study never o built as working machine as far as I know s e Green on/off switch visible protected by the lf carry handle from damage and from being accidentally knocked into OFF position. b a My aim is to get to a machine about this size but twinl wheeled, a tricky packaging challenge. a n This project works and balances. Motor covers c above and below deck still need to be made. Whole e frame needs paint and tidying but all the main r design elements work. w it Motors have been brought in really tight into centre of h frame. This means they can be in same horizontal A plane as the wheels, they won't hit ground when tipped r and in theory at least the board could be ridden either d way up, i.e. board is symmetrical when seen from u side, the wheels have not just been bolted up from i underneath. n o C o d e 4 ) O n e

W h e e l e d S e lf B a l a n c i n g S c o o t e r T h e T H I N G

Side view showing the new super slim profile. One end is solid on ground and the other end (the end of main direction of travel) has a roller skate wheel so if motor cuts when moving along, this (forward) end will tip down but board will roll to a stop rather than stopping instantly and throwing rider off.

5 ) L i n k s Very short chains and motors mounted very t close to centre axle line. Getting all this o geometry just right was really tricky. Chain o clearances are about 2mm in places. t - Pneumatic tyre/wheel/sprocket h combination is from a Razor E200 electric e scooter replacement rear wheel set. r - These seem to come with 2 potential sizes s of sprocket, it looks as if later models had e bigger wheel sprocket for lower top speed lf but more torque. I am using the one with b the larger sprocket. a - The drum brake mechanism has been Batteries are 12V each pack, two packs, 3.7 Amp h for

Many hours of cutting, welding, grinding, more welding went into this frame to get the tolerances correct. Chains have to line up with motors, chains must not rub frame. Frame has to be strong enough to take bending forces (weight of rider) through exact place where motors, axles, IMU and chains are also located.

l removed from each wheel. R/C cars. They slide into a rectangular box section in a - The alloy holding this mechanism has the frame from each end so can easily be replaced n been sawn off (making sure wheel bearing without any dismantling of frame. Box section c not damaged) and axle for each wheel has protects batteries completely. They can supply up to i been shortened. 40 amps in short bursts so may not last that long in n - Axle fixed rigidly at inner end on frame terms of endurance but should be powerful enough to g which is why the outer axle mount does not run the machine. p take any side-to-side loads and can be made r of flat steel - it only has to carry vertical o load. j e Plenty of free space in the other end of the c frame for future electronics: t Compass module? GPS? LCD display s perhaps. Thinking of putting Sharp 6 downward looking infra-red range finders ) in each end to measure distance to ground. 2 This would make board automatically 0 adjust its "trim" so if for example going up 1 or down a slope, each end would stay same 0 (i.e. equal) distance from the ground for a T more natural ride. w i Also in previous machines with wheels Batteries slide in. n underneath deck, when deck tips, this - moves the wheels off the centre-line, so Wmotors have to do more work to bring deck h level. Now the axles are in centre line e (rather than under it), then if board tips, e wheels are still closer to being under the l rider, i.e. not pushed off to one side, so e perhaps overall power consumption may go r down a little. r e b Despite large wheels, ride height is same as the height u of axle line from ground, about 10cm. If moving along il and hit small obstruction, board less likely to violently d tip as centre of lateral momentum is through the axle , line. e b i k e b a tt e r y t e 4 LED's on the top. What are they for? a All 4 led's flash at startup, they then all go

r out apart from LED4 to show it is now OK d for you to stand on it (i.e. after gyros have o zeroed themselves), and that the power is w still on. n i) You now tilt it level for first time. When . it comes level for first time, the self 7 balancing algorithm goes active. Board is ) mushy underfoot for a few seconds then C "tightens up" to stop initial reflex urge of O rider to correct what the board is doing (the D "soft-start"). E ii) A reading is taken from each pressure 8 sensor under hell/toe of right foot and this ) becomes set as the normal mid-position C setting, i.e. when you want to go straight on o and not turn. d iii) The middle 2 LED's now light up when e you are going straight ahead. V iv) If you lean back with right foot, the 2 2 LED's on the same side of board that your w heels are on light up. it If you lean forwards onto toes, the 2 LED's h on same side of the board as your toes light S up. a This allows you to learn how board is v reacting to the pressure of your right foot it heel and toe on the pressure sensors, in z terms of steering. k v) If you roll right foot over to one side y (you cannot just start to lift it off else board July 22, 2011: I have obtained 2 of the new(ish) 1 inch diameter FlexiForce variable resistance pressure G would tip left side down and shoot off to sensors. These measure pressure under heel and toe of o the left): no pressure on either pressure right foot and will enable board to be steered by l sensor, deadman is activated, motors are leaning, more like a real skateboard. By rolling whole a cut. "Countdown" starts - if you put foot y back on within about 1 second, motors will foot to right (so not pressing either sensor) this will fi restart (i.e. it gives you a slight chance to cut power to motors and act as the "deadman" switch. lt recover the situation), if not, then deadman If this all works OK I can finally get rid of the hande switch is permanently engaged, all LED's held deadman switch /steering controller. It is nearly there, just a case of improving the software a little ri go out, and you will have to reset board more. n from scratch. g o f a ORIGINAL ONE WHEELED c SKATEBOARD AND MACHINES c THAT DEVELOPED FROM IT ARE e BELOW. l MUCH MORE INFO ON EACH a VARIATION CAN BE FOUND USING n THE LINKS ON LEFT HAND d MARGIN g y CARBON PANELLED TWIN WHEEL r VERSION May 2010 o Here in the 3 images below is the version

i seen in the video above, completely rebuilt n (May 2010) using as many carbon fibre p honeycomb sandwich composite panels as u possible (shorter, more rounded ends, t lighter). More pics of this on links menu on s left. 9 ) N o t e s o n a c c e l a n d Carbon fibre self balancing skateboard 1 g steered using a wireless Wii Nunchuck y r o s c a li n g u s i Carbon fibre self balancing skateboard 2 n g a c o m b i n e d S p Carbon fibre self balancing skateboard 3 a r TWIN WHEELER BEFORE CARBON k REBUILD 2009 f u n

EARLY MONOWHEEL (2008)

Big and heavy but it balanced - 3m to get to that point. 4 potentiometers in hand controller to adjust all variables in balance algorithm while riding it. MONOWHEEL (2009)

Redesign with flat wooden deck. Simpler hand controller. ONE WHEELED FORWARD FACING SCOOTER

a c c e l/ g y r o b o a r d 1 0 ) P a rt s li s t f o r m o n o w h e The deck of the twin wheeler is essentially e one large but thin e-bike LiFePO4 battery. l 1 1 YouTube Video ) W ir Video of several self balancers in action at i a carnival July 2010 (Cowley Road n Carnival, Oxford, UK). Includes one and g twin wheeled boards plus the new stand up t scooter. h e EASY-BUILD SKATEBOARD VERSION m(March 2010) i Below is the stripped down easy-build selfc balancing platform, make into whatever r you like, skateboard, segway clone, R2D2 o etc. I built this version after makerfaire. t Video and photos below. o t Instructions for ths relatively-easy-build

Would the "ORBIS" design have actually worked? Well this is an attempt to find out! Link to the ORBIS design study: Click Here SCOOTER REBUILD Sept 2010 as the "THING"

h machine are also now on Instructables.com e here: O http://www.instructables.com/id/EasyS build-self-balancingMskateboardrobotsegway-/ C p i n a r r a n g e m e n t 1 2 ) M o n o w h e e New version of arduino board described on l Instructables website. Uses simple welded G frame to hold motors plus wheel axles. Two o lead acid batteries will just fit under deck. - Board with arduino and sabertooth motor K controller is under panel on upper deck. Verdict: It works but it is heavy and slow. I may a rebuild it into something else. rt p YouTube Video a rt s EASY-BUILD VERSION VIDEO. 1 2 b EASY-BUILD SKATEBOARD VERSION (video ) above). W ir The plan: e -Arduino based as low cost plus many l forums to help you. e -No welding required. All hardware can s come from store such as "B and Q" just s need a drill, saw, nuts and bolts, spanners. W -Commercial motor controller, no point

ii skimping on this. N -Ebay electric scooter motors. u -Electric scooter wheels/sprockets n -Everything bolts up onto a wooden flat c square to form a self contained selfh balancing module. Wheels can be close u together for a skateboard or wide for a c Segway type build. k A -User can bolt anything they like to the top r of the self-balancing module i.e. a d skateboard deck u -User supplies whatever batteries they can i afford starting with a couple of lead-acids n on top of the centre of the deck as the o lowest cost starting option. i - Accel and gyrosx2 all in one module from n Sparkfun. Lowest cost one in their range is t used. AUGUST 2010: Self balancing scooter built into a e Has anyone else built one of these twin small rucksack r wheelers since I posted the Instructable? f Oh yes! Ages currently range from 12yrs to a 81yrs. c This Instructable is over a year old now, so e yes indeed, people have. Here are a few I f know of: o 1) Skateboard: http://www.youtube.com/ r watch?v=kSW7YXLCjqk t 2) Skateboard: http://www.youtube.com/ w watch?v=u-uUidBZEnM i 3) The n Velociryder: http://www.youtube.com/wat - ch?v=xvfUIxusPZw&feature=player_embe w dded h 4) Great board video - Buffalo State e College senior project: e http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEaTxa l hyQxc e 5) Another board based on this r Instructable: 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhbH_A 4 mIKZA&feature=related ) 6) A board based on old FIRST robotics Small front wheels are airborne when self-balancing. S parts + code from this instructable (FIRST e robotics was started by Dean Kamen who lf also invented the Segway, to encourage b youth to get interested in a engineering): http://www.youtube.com/wa l tch?v=Vh9LpNQ_S0k&feature=related a 7) Carbon fiber racing car seat with 2 n wheels also based on this instructable - the c SciChair: i http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJMY7 n 0P1lEk g 8) Carey's self-balancing platform, good

a video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v= ir ngMJcxeB7og p o rt r u c k s a c k s c o o t e r 1 5 Idea was for something you could actually carry ) around and use. P r e s s Development of all the original u r monowheel versions has now e been moved to link 16 on left hand s e menu. n s o r s t e e ri n g 1 6 ) D e v e l o p m

e n t o f o ri g i n a l Subpages (17): 10) Parts list for monowheel 12b) Wireless Wii Nunchuck Arduino interface for mtwin-wheeler 12) Monowheel Go-Kart parts 14) Self balancing airport rucksack scooter 16) o Development of original monowheel board 2008-2009 17) Electric Unicycle project 2011 1) n Carbon panelled self balancing skateboard version May 2010 2) Twin Wheel self balancing o skateboard lightweight version 3) Easy build low cost Arduino self-balancer with Arduino Code 4) wOne Wheeled Self Balancing Scooter - The THING 5) Links to other self balancing projects 6) h 2010 Twin-Wheeler rebuild, e-bike battery teardown. 9) Notes on accel and gyro scaling using a e combined Sparkfun accel/gyro board Code 3 Code V2 with Savitzky-Golay filter on inputs Selfe balancing skateboards will be at Brighton mini-makerfaire Wiring the correct micro pins to the l OSMC b o a r d 2 0 0 8 2 0 0 9 1 7 ) E l e c tr i c U n i c y c l e p r

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